The present disclosure relates generally to fluidic architectures, and more particularly to microfluidic architectures and methods of making the same.
Fluidic architectures, such as those used in fluid ejection assemblies, utilize a chamber and a plurality of nozzles or apertures through which fluids are ejected. The microfluidic architecture used to form the chamber and nozzles may include a semiconductor substrate or wafer having a number of electrical components provided thereon (e.g., an ink-jetting device may include a resistor for heating ink in the chamber to form a bubble in the ink, which forces ink out through the nozzle).
The chamber and nozzle may be formed from layers of polymeric materials. One potential difficulty with the use of polymeric materials to form the nozzle and chamber is that such materials may become damaged or degraded when used with particular fluids (e.g., inks having relatively high solvent contents, etc.). Another difficulty with the use of polymeric materials is that such materials may become damaged or degraded when subjected to certain temperatures that may be reached during operation of the device in which the architecture is being used.
The chamber and nozzle may also be formed of metals. Certain metals may have desirable material properties, however, these metals may also increase the cost of manufacturing the microfluidic architectures.
Still further, processes for forming and coating architectures are generally not selective processes. As such, substantially the entire architecture is formed from the same material in order to achieve desired surface properties. Further, if a coating is desirable on the architecture, generally a coating should be used that is compatible with the device and/or components that are coated in the process.
As such, it would be desirable to provide a microfluidic architecture that may be selectively coated and relatively inexpensively manufactured.